MeetKensley

Kensley’s mom takes a ton of photos, and in just about all of them, little Kensley is beaming. If you didn’t know she was sick, you wouldn’t guess it — she’s a happy baby. But Kensley has a cancerous brain tumor called anaplastic astrocytoma … and a serious medical history.

She received surgical intervention in utero for spina bifida, and it was during a routine follow-up visit at 8 months old that doctors discovered the mass in her brain. They referred her to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital right away.

Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80% since it opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is working to drive the overall survival rate for childhood cancer to 90%, and we won’t stop until no child dies from cancer.

Patient Kensley poses with her older sister

None of this could happen if we had to receive a bill. I start crying if I talk about it.Kensley's mom

At St. Jude, Kensley has received more than 28 rounds of chemotherapy since February 2017, to be followed by oral chemotherapy at home. She also sees a nutritionist, a speech therapist, an occupational therapist and a physical therapist.

Kensley thinks her big sister and brother are the funniest people on Earth

Help our families focus on their sick child, not medical bills.

When you donate monthly, your gift means families, like Kensley's, never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food — because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.